For executing print processing, an operator configures various setup options for a print job on a print setup screen displayed by a printing system or a printing device, to generate the print job. Because of a large number of setup options for a print job and complicated setup contents, erroneous input can often occur in the operations to configure a print job. In view of that, in order to make operator's operations to input setup information easier, there have been proposed systems configured to use a database including records of setup information that had been specified for past print jobs and had been registered in advance, and to use the database to present an operator a candidate for a setting value prepared by using machine learning.
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (JP-A) No. 2017-147668 discloses the following information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus includes: a storage storing operating patterns of one or more image forming apparatuses and setup contents for the one or more image forming apparatuses with being associated with each other, and an accumulator for accumulating history data indicating an operating history or histories of the one or more image forming apparatuses. The information processing apparatus further includes an output controller configured to, on finding in the history data accumulated in the accumulator history data corresponding to a certain operating pattern stored in the storage, output setup contents stored in the storage in association with the certain operating pattern to the one or more image forming apparatuses.
For another example, JP-A No. 2015-176293 discloses the following information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus includes a display configured to display print settings recommended on the basis of print data; and one or more processors. The one or more processors are configured to receive a change of a value for a first print setup option among the print settings, and in response to receiving the change, use a history of print settings used for past print processing, to determine a second print setup option to be changed together with the change of the value for the first print setup option. The display is further configured to display a recommendation to change a value for the determined second print setup option.
For another example, though it is not a technique relating to print processing, JP-A No. 2010-282416 discloses the following method for recommending section data to an operator. In the method, an apparatus uses a first text file of a parent population of text information and a second text file of samples of text information to which verified section data have been added, to generate a first data file of a classification code table and a second data file of a table of statistical information of classification codes, where the first data file indicates correspondence between section data and classification codes, and the table of statistical information of classification codes is a collection of occurrence numbers of classification codes in the first text file. The apparatus extracts classification codes from new text information, and then extracts pieces of section data corresponding to the classification codes, from the first data file. The apparatus further extracts statistical information from the second data file, for each piece of section data, and then selects and presents candidates for the pieces of section data corresponding to the new text information, on the basis of the extracted statistical information.
As an example of a technique to judge whether input information is appropriate, JP-A No. 2014-126902 discloses the following product information management apparatus configured to manage information of products and components. The product information management apparatus includes a storage controller that stores and registers various kinds of product information including data about components of products and requirements for the products, and co-occurrence relationship between the various kinds of product information, into a storage. The product information management apparatus further includes: one or more processors configured to use component data and product requirement data of the various kind of product information, to calculate information of conditions for determining the appropriateness of components, and store the calculated information in the storage. The product information management apparatus further includes: a display configured to present on a screen the co-occurrence relationship to an operator.
There are a large number of setup options to be configured for a print job, and it increases operator's time and efforts necessary for input operations and creates operator's demands to complete configuration of a print job with a reduced number of input operations. JP-A No. 2017-147668 discloses a technique to search for a template for similar settings, on the basis of history data such as job names and original documents, but the disclosed template is not suitable to be used for a situation that a part of setup options has been changed and another situation that setup options are configured for generating a new print job, because the template is prepared by fixing the setup contents at the same time. Further, JP-A No. 2015-176293 discloses a technique to present a setup option to be changed together with a change of a part of settings specified for a job, and a candidate value for the setup option to be changed, but the disclosed technique is not suitable for presenting a candidate value for a setup option for which no value is input.
Further, there are complicated constraints on a combination of settings for a print job, and learning of possible combinations of setting values for all the setup options increases the cost of machine learning. Accordingly, a selection of setup options to be used for the machine learning and a selection of a setup option for which a candidate value is to be presented are important for the design for a system for presenting a candidate value for a setup option.
Further, operators performing input operations can improve their skills to configure a print job, by checking a candidate for a value to be specified for a setup option, presented by the system, but such a system does not always find and present an appropriate candidate. As a reason why the system fails to determine an appropriate candidate value for a certain setup option, it can be considered that, in spite of appropriate setting values that have already been input for other setup options, there are no candidate value or multiple candidate values for the certain setup option that can be used together with the setting values input for other setup options. As another reason, it can be considered that one of the other setup options for which setting values have been input is indefinite and it makes a judgement of the appropriateness of a candidate value found for the certain setup option by the system difficult. When the system does not present a candidate, operators cannot know a reason why the system does not present a candidate, and operators' configuration skills are not improved in the situation.